Cool Hunting

Like EasyJet's shuffleboard-free EasyCruises, the first-ever Brazil Fashion Cruise promises a reinvented cruising experience. The trip in a Sophia Loren-inaugurated Italian naval ship sets sail from Santos (near São Paulo) on 1 February 2008 and heads up the Brazilian coast to visit four cities over the course of a week, while entertaining guests in the world of fashion, music and art.

Though it's definitely an odd proposal, there's already a list of big names linked to the cruise. As part of the fashion segment, eight designers—including Samuel Cirnansck and Uniqlo guest designer Juliana Jabour, both of whom show at São Paulo Fashion Week—will put on runway shows aboard the ship. Street artists from the internationally-adored Baglione collective, which includes Sesper (pictured, above right), Pato, Flavio Samelo, Tinho, Thais Beltrame, Flip and Herbert Baglione, will put on live painting exhibits and DJs like Mau Mau and Renato Ratier will give guests something to help work off that inebriation. There's even a music workshop planned, as well as a model contest with a contract to a top Brazilian agency as the big prize.

Stops in Buzios, Salvador, Maceio and Ilheus are planned, with about six to 10 hours at each place before the boat disembarks for the next locale. The MSC Musica cruise liner is seriously lush, with 13 floors, three pools, a movie theater, Internet cafe and more. Of course, lush (or should we say lust) comes at a price. The cost for the seven-night, eight-day cruise varies between $1,190 to $1,490 per cabin, depending on location, with an additional port tax of about $200. The cost includes the events plus five meals a day; beverages outside of breakfast aren't covered.

The site is in Portuguese, but you can write to contato [at] fashioncruise [dot] com [dot] br for more information in English.